"Mainstream" vs "Taboo" Erotica

Conventional industry-standard book classification systems do a
poor job of distinguishing mainstream erotica from taboo erotica.
This makes it difficult for retailers and readers to distinguish
one from the other. At Smashwords, we carry a wide variety of
legal erotica, including books that contain taboo themes.

In September 2017 we implemented new erotica classification
requirements for Smashwords authors and publishers.

Below is a summary of “Taboo” themes and their definitions.
These definitions were developed in close consultation with our
largest retail partners to ensure uniform policy enforcement
across our distribution network.

Erotica titles which have been certified by their authors or
publishers as containing none of the themes listed below are
considered "mainstream erotica" and will be shown if readers
select the
"Include mainstream erotica"
option from the filter.

Books containing one or more of the themes listed below are
considered "taboo erotica," and these, along with older erotica
or erotic romance books which have not yet been certified, will
be filtered out of a reader’s Smashwords search results unless
the reader selects the
"Include all erotica"
option.

“Taboo” theme definitions

Age play -
One or more consenting adult characters role playing,
pretending to be babies or children.

Bestiality -
Sexual relations between humans and real-world animals (sex
with Big Foot, dinosaurs, shape shifters and other imaginary
creatures is not bestiality).

Dubious Consent (dubcon) -
A common and popular theme in mainstream fiction. Dubcon
explores the gray area between consent and non-consent. Not
clear if the receiver of the sexual act was fully on board
or not at the time of the act. Most major retailers carry
dubcon erotica.

Incest or pseudo-incest -
Sexual relations between family members, whether biologically
or non-biologically related. Includes stepbrother, stepsister
and step-anyone.

Nonconsensual sexual slavery -
Erotic depiction of a person captured or held against
their will, such as kidnapping, imprisonment or human
trafficking. Not to be confused with BDSM, which is predicated
upon informed consent and negotiation between both parties
before the act, and which provides safe words so either
partner can end the act if it goes too far. If the book
adheres to BDSM best practices, we instruct authors and
publishers to not classify it as nonconsensual sexual slavery.

Rape for titillation -
The dominant theme of this book is rape — whether the
rape is by one person or a character is raped by a group of
people, i.e. a gang rape or nonconsensual "gang bang" —
and it targets readers who are titillated by the fantasy of
nonconsensual sexual relations.

The above list is not all inclusive. There are many other
taboo themes that have never been allowed at Smashwords.
For a full summary of Smashwords erotica policies, please
review Section 9f of the
Smashwords Terms of Service.

A gripping true crime murder mystery spotlighting the inside story of why What’s My Line TV star and Pulitzer Prize-nominated media icon Dorothy Kilgallen is one of the most feared journalists in history, and why her threatened exposure of the truth about the JFK assassination triggered a cover-up by at least four government agencies.

The gut-wrenching true story of a young man's incarceration and escape from a Turkish prison, a classic story of survival and human endurance, told with humor, honesty, and heart, it became the Academy Award-winning blockbuster film of the same name. In 1970 Billy Hayes was arrested at the Istanbul airport with 4 pounds of hashish, given a life sentence, and made a dramatic escape after 5 years.

Was What’s My Line TV Star, media icon, crack investigative reporter and journalist Dorothy Kilgallen murdered for writing a tell-all book about the JFK assassination? Is the main suspect in her death still at large? Kilgallen’s official cause of death, reported as an overdose of barbiturates and alcohol, has always been suspect since no investigation occurred despite the staged death scene.

What really happened to Madeleine Beth McCann in Praia da Luz, Portugal in 2007? Was she abducted as the Gerry and Kate have claimed or did something happen to Madeleine on May 3 in the vacation apartment and the incident covered up? Criminal Profiler Pat Brown analyzes the evidence and takes the readers through the steps of profiling, developing a theory that is intriguing and controversial.

The New York Times calls American Tragedy a "...a valuable, gripping and illuminating work [...] If you are going to read only one book on the case of O. J. Simpson, this is a strong candidate to be it."

She was a hard-working, cheerful waitress, one of the nicest people you’d ever want to know. She was also a three-bottle-a-day alcoholic, hopelessly in love with the IHOP’s manager, Allen Bryant. Bryant wanted his live-in lover, IHOP owner Art Venecia, dead. And Dee Casteel helped him to arrange it.
But there was an even more gruesome killing to come …

A killer couple bound by secrets, lies, and sex slave fantasies.
Over a grisly period of 26 months, Gerald and Charlene Gallego went on a bloody and brutal rampage of kidnapping, rape, and murder that spanned three states and claimed eleven lives.

When Ruie Ann Park—a pillar of the Van Buren, Arkansas, community—was found beaten to death and lying in a pool of blood in her home, the police and local residents assumed the son was the murderer. But the years would uncover a more sinister story. Up till that night, the Park family seemed to have it all. For fifty years they owned and published The Press Argus newspaper.

Billy Hayes leapt from prison isolation to international notoriety when Midnight, the book about his 5 years in and escape from a Turkish prison, became a worldwide bestseller, and an Academy Award-winning film. Midnight Return chronicles his struggles and triumphs in that transition, tracing Billy's journey from desperation to freedom, self-knowledge, and healing.

The Supreme Team was one of the most notorious drug crews in New York in the 1980s crack era. They have been celebrated in the lyrical lore of hip-hop by artists such as 50 Cent, Nas and Ja Rule. This book represents the most concise volume to date on their history and rise to infamy.

Examines the question at the heart of our criminal justice. In this hard hitting book, Robin Bowles looks at the Australian Justice system and some of the major criminal investigations and judgements that have major questions still hanging over them.

Would you know if your child was being groomed by a paedophile?
This is a true story.
Born into poverty and violence Ray is forced to beg for food on the streets of inner Sydney. The dark world his social worker takes him into, Sydney, Wollongong and Hunter Valley paedophile rings, is a trap for a boy without a proper home or schooling.

The world is awash with dirty money.
Most of it comes from illicit drugs. Who's laundering it? Bankers, lawyers, accountants and money managers - from Wall Street to Main Street via Switzerland and the Caribbean.
The Laundrymen gets to the root of the problem and, 20 years since it first became an international bestseller, remains the definitive book on money laundering.

What is so captivating about Vegas? Is it how the skim worked and how millions of dollars vanished uncounted? Ever hear about the bad guys that rigged the gin rummy games at the Friars Club and took a bunch of famous people to the cleaners? Steve Fischer, an avid researcher and collector, bring us Vegas like you've never seen, tales you've never heard--until now.

In Street Legends Vol. 1, Seth brings forth powerful biographies of six of the most notorious gangster of the crack era who influenced hip-hop and street culture. This book profiles six of the biggest street legends from the crack era- Kenneth “Supreme” McGriff, Wayne Perry, Anthony Jones, Aaron Jones, Peter “Pistol Pete” Rollack and George “Boy George” Rivera.

Sometimes tragedy is our teacher. Skeletons in My Closet is an unorthodox police memoir taking readers on a ride-along like no other, revealing poignant truths about life and death, and how we can all work and live together. Danger and grit pair with humour and compassion in this gripping, fresh read.

Lizzie Andrew Borden was tried and acquitted in the 1892 axe murders of her father and stepmother in Fall River, Massachusetts. Media coverage of the case created a furor throughout the United States reminiscent of the Rosenberg, Claus von Bulow and O.J. Simpson trials. No other suspect was ever charged with the double homicide, and speculation on the case continues to this day.